Gabriel Ramos explains securities probe disclosed prior to election

License forfeiture brought up weeks before primary election

SILVER CITY >> At last week's candidate forum hosted by the Grant County Democratic Party, a copy of a consent agreement between Grant County Commissioner Gabriel Ramos and the New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department Securities Division was left anonymously on everyone's chair. Reportedly, Tom Vaughan, a man sitting in the audience, asked if the person responsible for the photocopies would identify himself or herself. However, the room remained silent.

"That's old news," Ramos said this week of the consent agreement. Ramos, a Democrat running for a second term for the District 1 County Commission seat, did not attend the forum because he said he felt it was more important to attend an informal teacher's meeting held at the same time last week to discuss issues at Silver Consolidated School system. Ramos said he went to the teacher's meeting instead because "when people call for help, you gotta be there."

The consent agreement was signed October 2013 by both Ramos and the director of the New Mexico Securities Division, Alan Wilson.

The agreement states that Ramos admits to no wrongdoing. He voluntarily gave up his license to act as a securities broker in New Mexico. His license as an insurance agent is not in question.

Ramos said that someone approached him about investing himself in a development project in Angel Fire, New Mexico. Ramos says he mentioned the investment to two friends, who got involved in the project. According to the consent agreement, the investors were guaranteed a return on their investment and that a national bank had committed to funding the project. According to the consent agreement, the promissory notes issued by the investment group, Village South Development, contained untrue statements. The investors lost their money.

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"He did not issue investment agreements, he was just the broker," Scott Mullins, the attorney for the New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Securities Division said.

Mullins also said the situation was, to some degree, a problem of bad timing.

"We had a good number of cases from 2008, this case is a good example of it," Mullins said. "It was a good idea that probably would have worked in 2005 or 2006 but in 2008, (the investment group) couldn't get additional money from lenders. The recession hit and it became really, really hard to get access to money. Normally, we get complaints only when people lose money."

According to Ramos, the state was considering fining him $5,000. Because he voluntarily gave up his broker's license and agreed to pay the $980 the state incurred in investigation costs, the state opted not to fine him. He will be able to sell securities again in 2016, Ramos said.

Ramos was concerned that this matter has come to light seven months after the agreement was signed because of the primary election coming up June 3. He will face Moses Clark in the Democratic primary.

"I hope you look into my opponent as closely as you're looking into me," he said.